Secrets
by CathGilLove
Summary: Boyd discovers one of Stella’s secrets and finds it could be more than helpful to the Cold Case Squad. And Stella and Spence start a relationship that could get them in very, very hot water.
1. Chapter 1

Title: Secrets

Author: ANNE (the insane one)

Rating: PG for now

Summary: Boyd discovers one of Stella's secrets and finds it could be more than helpful to the Cold Case Squad. And Stella and Spence start a relationship that could get them in very, very hot water.

Characters Featured: Peter Boyd, Grace Foley, Spencer Jordan, Stella Goodman and Eve Lockhart.

1/?

* * *

Peter Boyd watched with avid interest as Stella Goodman walked out of his office. Grace came in with a file and looked at him strangely.

"What?"

"What?" Boyd sat up. "Oh, right. Stella's taking the afternoon off."

"Is everything alright?"

"Huh? Oh, yes. She has to pick up relatives from the airport."

"Oh, that's nice. Having family come to stay." Grace opened the file. "Now…"

"She said relatives. In the plural."

Grace took off her glasses and stared at him. "Are you being deliberately cryptic or have I just not drunk enough coffee today?"

"Stella's files only list her mother. What other relatives could she have?"

"Last I checked, personnel don't do a family tree, Boyd."

"I'm just curious in getting to know the people who work for me." He smiled angelically at Grace. "Is that a crime?"

"When you grin like that, I'm always concerned."

Boyd frowned at her. "Spence!"

Grace threw her hands in the air and watched Spencer walk in. "Be careful, Spence. He might want your family tree too."

The young man looked apprehensive. "What?"

"Who's Stella picking up from the airport?"

Spencer lifted an eyebrow. "Her mother and sister?"

Boyd smiled. "See, that's all I wanted to know. Simple."

Spencer looked between Grace and Boyd. "Am I missing something?"

Grace sighed. "I think we both are."

* * *

"She wanted to tell the cabin crew how to cook properly."

Stella glanced at her mother. "You didn't."

"It was an idea."

"Yeah, a bad one. You're lucky we didn't get thrown off the plane. I had to physically hold you down."

"Don't exaggerate, Caroline."

Stella smirked and stared at her younger sister. The two could have been twins, both taking after their mother in looks. The only difference was eyes – Stella had her mother's, while Caroline had her father's.

"Stella, tell me about your job." Marie Goodman was a formidable woman who loved her daughters to distraction. She had never been comfortable with Stella's decision to join the force, and even less comfortable with her move to England. Now her sole goal in life was to see that they were both happy.

"It's a good job, Mum. I like it."

"They treat you well? You get good benefits?"

"I'm fine, Mum."

Caroline changed the subject. "Are you sure there's enough room for me to stay with you for a while?"

"I wouldn't have said yes if I didn't mean it. But I still don't see why you want to live in London. You love Paris. You used to spend 3 hours in the Musee D'Orsay staring at Monet's paintings. I know, because you used to drag me there too."

"Maybe I just want a change of pace. Besides, I've missed you since you've been in London."

Marie narrowed her eyes. "Caroline, go and wait for the bags. Stella will be there in a moment."

Caroline rolled her eyes. "That's mum's subtle way of getting rid of me."

After her sister had gone, Stella turned to her mother. "What's going on?"

"She's been doing some work that she shouldn't be and then she said someone was following her. I don't know whether it's her creativity working too much or what."

"What kind of work?"

Marie gestured to Caroline, who was coming back. "Ask her yourself. Caroline, tell your sister what you've been doing."

Caroline groaned. "Geez, how old am I? Twelve? I've been working as a sketch artist for the police."

"And?" her mother prompted.

"Recreating faces from skulls and corpses."

Stella looked confused. "I thought you weren't going to be a police officer."

"And I'm not. I may have trained, but I never graduated remember? It's not a requirement to be an officer to do what I do." Caroline looked between Marie and Stella. "Anyway, Stella, mum has decided we have to come and see where you work."

Stella smirked. "Subtle change of subject there."

"She probably also wants to see if you've got a man stashed away somewhere."

Stella tried not to blush. Caroline's eyes widened.

"Oh my god, I was just kidding…"

"What?" Marie looked between the two of them.

Stella clamped a hand over her sister's mouth and pulled her into a hug. "Nothing. Absolutely nothing."

* * *

Later that evening, when Marie was fast asleep, Stella and Caroline were enjoying a glass of wine in Stella's living room.

"Mum doesn't like your job."

Caroline looked at her older sister. "Mom doesn't like your job either." She grinned. "I guess we're even."

"Mum said that you think someone is following you."

"It's nothing."

"You're working for the police now. If you think someone is following you, they probably are."

"Stella, I recreate faces. I draw crime scenes. I don't think anyone is interested."

"You help put murderers away, they're always interested."

Caroline sipped her drink. "I heard Mum talking to you about someone who died. Who was it?"

Stella paused, not quite sure how to answer the question and wanting to keep her sister innocent of any knowledge of Bill Drake. "It's not important. He died a couple of years ago."

"Ookay."

"Just trust me. It's not important." Stella scrutinised her younger sister. "Mum's worried about you."

"I don't know why. I'm not the cop in the family, YOU are."

"You're the youngest. We're entitled to worry about you."

"I'm not a baby anymore."

"Try telling mum that." Stella finished her drink. "You're not going to tell me about your job, are you?"

"Nope."

"Glad to see your stubbornness hasn't changed."

Caroline watched her sister go into the kitchen. "At least we know who taught me."

* * *


	2. Chapter 2

2

The next day found Spencer corning Stella as she arrived to work. Her lips curved into a smile.

"And where were you last night?"

"I thought you might want some time alone with your mother and sister."

She lifted an eyebrow. "Really? I thought it had more to do with you being scared of my mother."

"I'm not scared!" Spencer protested. "I'm just…"

Before he could think up a way to finish his sentence, Eve bustled through.

"Are you two coming? We have a new case and it's about a child, which means Boyd is on a mission. Again."

"We'll be right there," Spencer assured her.

After Eve had passed through, Stella turned back to Spencer, lifting an eyebrow.

"Saved by Boyd."

Spencer looked around them, then pressed a quick kiss to her lips. "We'll talk later. I promise."

She rolled her eyes and followed him, inwardly cursing Eve's timing. When she arrived, Boyd was already at the board, his eyes roaming over pictures that had been put there.

"This is Eva Snowdon," Eve said, pointing to the picture of the little grinning girl on the board. "She went missing five years ago when she was seven." Eve gestured to another picture, this one of a body who looked remarkably like Eva. "This body was found two days ago in a shallow grave. It's Eva Snowdon – aged 12."

Spencer blinked. "What?"

"She's been alive for five years – before she was shot in the back of the head and buried."

"Why keep her alive for five years just to kill her?" Boyd asked. "If she was kidnapped to be kept as a replacement child then there's no reason to kill her. If she was just a kidnap for ransom, why keep her alive for five years."

"What about signs of abuse?" Grace interrupted.

"That's the interesting thing. She's been perfectly looked after – her teeth are perfect, she's in a healthy condition. The only abnormality is that she's not a virgin."

"She was raped?"

"The strange part of it is that there's no trauma where you'd expect it. No serious bruising or tearing, which are the usual signs of sexual assault."

"What about child porn?" Spencer suggested. "Would that explain her condition?"

"I'd go with that," Eve agreed. "But I've still got to finish my examination. Her parents have been notified and are coming to identify her body. But because they haven't seen her for five years…"

"They'll know it's her," Boyd assured her. "So, let's start with the child porn theory, shall we? Stella, I want everything on Eva Snowdon's disappearance. Suspects, last movements, all the files and forensics. Spence, since this was your theory, I want a list going back at least 5 years of all the children taken in the area and the ones that turned up dead – especially near where Eva Snowdon was found."

"There could be hundreds!"

"That's why when Stella's finished, she's going to help you. Grace, you and I are going to talk to the Snowdon's."

Grace got up, hurrying after him as he strode out the room. "Shouldn't we give them some time, especially considering they're about to identify their daughter who they're just about to find out has been alive for five years?"

Eve watched the two disappear with amusement and got up. "Right. I'm going back to Eva. See you guys later."

Spencer grinned at Stella. "Alone at last."

She leaned over and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek. "I'll go and grab the files on Eva Snowdon. When I get back, I'll help you with the list."

"You better hurry! I'll be here until the end of time without your help."

"Well, since I refuse to wait around that long, I'll be right back."

* * *

Grace watched carefully as the Richard and Louisa Snowdon walked into her office. They were obviously distraught, having just identified their daughter's body. While she studied them, Boyd launched straight in.

"Mr and Mrs Snowdon, can you tell us about the day Eva disappeared?"

Inwardly, Grace rolled her eyes. Tact was still not Boyd's strong point.

Louisa gestured for her husband to talk as she hunted in her bag for tissues.

"Of course. I had a conference in Manchester and Louisa was coming with me. Eva was staying at home with her nanny, Maria. We received a phonecall from Maria that evening, telling us that Eva was missing and we needed to come home straightaway."

"So you weren't there when Eva went missing?"

Grace did another inward eyeroll. She really needed to talk to Boyd about his approach. Again.

"No." Louisa sniffed. "We have always regretted that. We thought maybe if we had been there, this might not have happened."

Grace decided to take charge. "Could you tell us what happened when you arrived home? Were the police there?"

Richard nodded. "Yes. And Maria, and also Jennifer Starr. She was a friend of Eva's from school that had been playing there that afternoon."

The psychologist knew Boyd was thinking the same thing. Why take Eva, and not Jennifer? "Were Jennifer's parents there?"

"They took her home not long after we arrived," Louisa said. "We haven't been in contact since."

Grace could understand the emotion behind that. "What did the police think happened?"

"At first we thought it might be a ransom," Richard explained. "But when no phone call or message came, we knew she'd just been taken. The police investigated everyone they could, but nothing ever came of it."

"Where has she been the past five years?" Louisa asked. "Who has been taking care of her?"

"We don't know," Grace admitted, "but…"

"We're going to find out," Boyd said. "Thank you for your time…" Distracted, he got up and walked outside.

Grace blinked and led the Snowdon's out of the room. When they had left, she turned to Boyd. "What was that all about?"

"They're not going to know anything. They weren't even there. We need to find the nanny – and this other kid." Boyd surveyed the room, noting it was empty. "Stella! Spence!"

The two detectives were in within seconds of each other. Grace lifted an eyebrow, but Boyd didn't even notice.

"Find me this nanny, this Maria whatever. And the girl….Jennifer Starr. I want to know where they are and I want to talk to them. I'm going to see Eve."

Grace watched Stella and Spence for a moment, before Spence finally caught her looking at them. She smiled quickly and headed after Boyd.

Stella looked up from where she was typing on the computer. "Everything okay?"

He was quiet for a moment, before smiling at her. "Yeah. Everything's fine."

--


	3. Chapter 3

3

Eve looked up as Boyd and Grace walked into the room. "Back so soon?"

"I just like visiting," Boyd replied, smiling sweetly.

Grace and Eve exchanged glances.

Boyd was looking over the boxes that Stella had brought in. "Have you gone through these again?"

Eve resisted the urge to smack him on the hand for touching her evidence. "No, not yet. I'm still working on the body."

"Don't we know everything we need to know?"

Grace peered over her glasses at him. "Do you have somewhere you need to be?"

Boyd blinked. "What?"

"You just seem to be very rushed today. And you weren't your most tactful with the Snowdon's either."

"Well I didn't ask them if they killed their daughter, did I? I thought that was very restrained of me."

Eve looked confused. "I thought they had an alibi."

"They did. Do," Grace corrected herself. "Boyd, what are you talking about?"

"We need to find this nanny and this other kid before we can completely rule out the parents, don't you think? No one has confirmed the alibi."

"What about the police?" Eve broached.

"Well they didn't find the girl, so they're hardly any help. What else can you tell me about the body. Or any other bodies similar."

Eve sighed. Hannibal's dinner was going to be late. Again.

* * *

Stella's eyes read over the files again, and in between she kept checking on Spencer. Ever since Grace and Boyd had left the room, he'd been acting odd. He was hiding something – no matter how good he was at it, she knew. She seemed to be able to read him a lot more now.

Their relationship had begun slowly – she had sat in the hospital waiting room until they had pronounced him stable. When she had finally told him, she'd expected anger. She got silence.

She'd gone home – to cry mainly, for what she had done, for what she had believed Bill Drake, and for that pull that she'd had towards Spencer Jordan that was now sure to go unexplored.

Then, two weeks after he'd been released, he'd turned up on her doorstep one night. At first he'd told her how he was bored out of his mind because he wasn't allowed on the job. And then she'd found herself telling him all about Bill Drake, her family and what had happened to cause his injury.

Again she had expected anger. She didn't get it, and she didn't get the silence either. Instead he began telling her about his family, about Mel, and about his feelings towards her when she had first begun.

And more importantly, how those feelings had changed.

It had begun not long after and now he practically lived with her. That was going to be hard to explain to her mother. She had expected to have to explain the night before, but Spencer hadn't turned up. Stella found she was more upset about not having him sleeping next to her than the fact he hadn't met her mother.

"What are you up to?"

She looked over at him, finding that now he was studying her. "Getting files for Boyd."

"You've got that look on your face."

"What look?"

"The one where you're thinking about something important."

"I was just thinking about last night. I think I've gotten used to you snoring beside me."

He looked indignant. "I don't snore!"

"Yes, you do. I'll record you if you don't believe me."

His eyes narrowed. "My snoring was the only reason you missed me?"

Stella shifted in her chair. "Maybe I just missed you sleeping beside me."

Spence smiled at her. "I'll be there tonight."

Her eyes locked onto his. "Promise?"

He nodded. "Promise."

* * *

Boyd studied the board with all the pictures of people on it. He saw a picture of Eva and of her parents. There was a picture of Jennifer Starr from when she was a child. What he didn't see was a picture of the nanny. "Stella!"

She materialised behind him. "I know, I know. Here she is. She changed her name, so I had to track her by her new name."

Boyd watched as Stella put the picture of Maria up – and wrote the name Madison Stubbs under it. "Madison Stubbs?"

"That's what she changed her name to."

Boyd called out again. "Grace!"

"I'm sitting right behind you, Boyd, you don't need to shout."

Boyd pointed at Madison. "She changed her name. Why would she want to do that? Guilty conscience? Hiding from the police?"

"It's possible. Or maybe she just wanted to distance herself from the situation." Grace opened her folder. "I've been reading up on some of the press from when Eva went missing. It was very high profile."

"Well of course it was. It's not every day that a seven year old goes missing from a rich family." Boyd looked around again. "Spence, have you got that list yet?"

"It's a longlist."

"Well you and Stella go through and start making it shorter."

"Actually, maybe Stella could help me," Grace said.

Boyd looked at her, lifting an eyebrow. "What?"

"I'd like to know more about Maria. Stella was able to find some information on her – she could help me."

"But don't you think we should find out about how many other kids there are?" Boyd asked.

"We've only got one body that's our case," Grace reminded him. "We need to find out what happened to her – we don't even know that it was to do with child porn."

Boyd decided it would be easier not to argue. "Fine, Stella, you go help Grace. Spence, keep going."

* * *

"You are late tonight."

Stella hung her coat up on the pin, seeing her mother standing in the hallway. "I had some work to do."

"Have you eaten? I made Bourguignon."

"No, I grabbed something at work."

Marie's eyes narrowed. "What did you 'grab'?"

Caroline poked her head around the doorway. "I'd eat it, Stella, before she starts telling you that you're too thin because you don't eat properly."

"She IS too thin!" Marie said, gesturing to her daughter.

Stella rolled her eyes. "Alright, alright. I'll eat."

"Mum went out shopping all this afternoon and filled your kitchen. You'll never want to eat again."

"Hush. The kitchen was empty. How you live like this Stella, is beyond me. You will need to keep food in the house now that your sister is here."

The two girls exchanged glances behind their mother's back, and Stella sat down at the table. Marie promptly placed a heaped plate in front of her.

"Eat."

Caroline smirked at her sister. Stella stuck her tongue out.

"Girls. Please. I have brought you up better than that."

"What did you do at work today?" Caroline asked.

"Caroline! Not at the dinner table."

"Tell you later," Stella replied, finding that her mother's dish was very good, and much better than the chicken kebab she'd grabbed as she left work.

"I want to see where you work, and meet the man who is your boss," Marie said, sitting down at the table.

Stella almost choked on her dinner. Caroline giggled and waited for Stella's reply.

"Mum, please. I get wanting to see where I work, but you can't seriously want to meet my boss. I'm not 12."

"I know exactly how old you are. I gave birth to you, remember? It was…"

"Thirty-six hours of excruciating pain," the two girls parroted.

"Don't be rude. Stella Goodman, if I am to trust this man to protect you and keep you safe, I intend to meet him."

"Mum, I'm a police officer too, remember?"

"Police need to rely on their teammates. Your father always said that. I want to meet the people responsible for backing you up."

Caroline got up and found the bottle of red wine. "I think I need a drink."

* * *

Marie finally left the two girls and went to bed. After washing up, Caroline said she was tired and was going to bed.

"Hey, Stella?"

"Mmm?"

"She's serious, you know? After what happened to Dad – she just wants to keep you safe." Caroline poured a glass of water. "I don't know what it was like when Dad died. I wasn't here yet. But she remembers every single second of what happened."

"I remember bits and pieces," Stella replied. "But you don't need to worry about me. I'm fine."

"Just give her a bit of leeway. She was really adamant to come and stay here. She wanted to come two years ago because of something, but she said you told her not to."

Stella paused for a moment, hoping her mother hadn't told her sister about Bill Drake. "Mum must have heard about an officer who died. I hardly knew him."

"Well, whatever. Just humour her for a bit."

"It sounds like you're the one that has to humour her. You still haven't told me everything you've been doing."

That spurred her sister to quickly make an exit. Stella frowned and was about to follow when she heard a knock at the door.

When she opened it, she found Spencer standing there. "Hi."

He smiled. "Hi." His hands in his pockets, he fidgeted a little. "Are they here?"

"Upstairs," Stella replied. She tried not to giggle at his nervousness. "You going to come in?"

He walked inside and looked around, as if expecting Caroline or Marie to suddenly appear. She watched him for a few moments, amused, and then moved a little bit closer.

"My mother is not going to burst in on us you know."

"In that case…" His lips joined with hers and they shared a long, hot kiss. His hands lifted her up against the wall and she moaned, wrapping her legs around his waist as they kissed.

She held him tight to her, gasping into the kiss as his fingers slid up underneath her shirt. "Spence…"

"I know…bedroom before we're caught." He kissed her again, but didn't move, too intent on touching her.

"Stella…oh…oh! Right. I'm heading back upstairs and never coming down again!" Caroline backed out of the hallway hands covering her eyes. Consequently she ran into a wall.

Spencer practically dropped Stella and she quickly adjusted her shirt. She gave an embarrassed Spencer a reassuring look, told him to stay there, and went after her sister.

"Caroline?"

"I didn't see anything. At least nothing that can't be blocked out."

"We weren't doing anything."

Caroline peeked through her fingers. "His hand was up your shirt."

Stella blushed. "Well, almost nothing."

"God, this is exactly like that time I caught you with Louis when Mum went away for the night."

Stella winced. "Please don't remind me. Look, wait here." She disappeared for a moment, dragging a still embarrassed Spencer into the room. "Spence, this is my sister, Caroline. Caroline, this is Spencer Jordan."

Spencer smiled slightly. "Nice to meet you."

"And you," Caroline replied. "Thank you for keeping your clothes on until you got up to her room." She turned to her sister. "I'd smuggle him up now before Mum hears anything and wants to know what's going on."

Stella was indignant. "It's my house! I don't need to smuggle him anywhere."

Caroline gave her a look, and Stella thought about it for a moment.

"You're right." She took Spencer's hand. "Let's go."

* * *


	4. Chapter 4

4

The next morning, Spencer awoke early and headed downstairs to get coffee, as he normally did. He noticed the door to Marie's room was still shut, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

As he arrived in the kitchen, he found Caroline sitting there, sipping coffee and reading a book.

"Hi," he said, still embarrassed about the previous night.

"Morning. Sleep well?"

"Uh…yeah."

Caroline chuckled. "Don't worry, I don't bite." She sipped her coffee again. "Unless you hurt her. Then I'll kill you."

"So noted." Spencer started making coffee – one for him, one for Stella. "You're exactly like her."

Caroline smiled. "Yeah well, I'm lucky."

Spencer got the milk out and poured some into Stella's mug. "Who was Louis?"

The younger woman got a mischievous grin on her face. "Stella's boyfriend when she was sixteen. Mum had gone away for the night and Stella was supposed to be baby-sitting me. She told her boyfriend that mum was away and gave him a time when she thought I'd be asleep."

"But you weren't?"

"Nope. I caught them – and at least you had all your clothes on. Louis was wearing boxers and socks. Not pretty." She grinned and drank more of her coffee. "Stella paid me two weeks allowance for keeping that one quiet."

With the amusing story in mind, Spencer took the coffees upstairs. He put them down and climbed onto the bed, and pressing a kiss to her lips. Then he whispered in her ear. "Louis left his socks on?"

Stella's eyes shot open. "What?"

Spence grinned. "Your sister told me that he left his socks on. Aren't you glad I take mine off?"

"I'll kill her!"

"You'll be late for work," he reminded her.

He listened in amusement as she swore in French. "Done? Do you want your coffee now?"

She glared at him. "I'm done. And yes."

He handed the mug over and sat down beside her, drinking from his own mug.

"And Spence?"

"Yeah?"

She looked at him over her mug. "I'm glad you take your socks off."

* * *

"Who was that young man that Stella snuck out of the house this morning?"

Caroline froze and stared at her mother. "What are you talking about?"

Marie smiled softly. "I'm not an idiot, dear. Your sister had a friend over last night."

Caroline said nothing, hoping her mother would stick with the friend idea.

"A male friend."

Or maybe not. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"How long has she been seeing him?"

"I'm not answering that." Caroline stared her mother down. "If you want to know about anything to do with Stella's personal life, you have to ask her. My lips are sealed."

"All I want to know is if he's good to her."

Her daughter faltered. "He seems to be."

"See? Was that so hard?" Marie smiled.

"Sarcasm duly noted, Mum."

* * *

Jennifer Starr projected a wisdom beyond her twelve years. She stared straight back at Grace and Boyd, her gaze unwavering. Jennifer's parents sat outside – they would be talked to later.

"Jennifer, my name is Dr Grace Foley. This is Chief Superintendent Boyd."

Her eyes narrowed. "Are you a shrink?"

"I'm a psychologist."

"So basically, you're a shrink."

Boyd tried not to laugh as he waited for Grace's reply.

"Yes, I suppose I am."

Boyd decided to dive straight in. "Jennifer, do you remember the afternoon that Eva went missing?"

Jennifer sent him a "duh" look and said nothing. This time it was Grace's turn to try not to laugh.

"Can you tell us what happened?"

"I've told it all before, you know."

Grace nodded. "We know. But we'd like you to tell us. Please."

"Whatever. I went over to Eva's to play. Her nanny was watching us. Eva wanted to play hide and seek, but Maria told us to stay inside."

"Her nanny?"

"Yeah. The phone rang and Maria went to answer it. Eva went outside. I told her we weren't supposed to, but she did anyway. It was my turn to count. When I finished, I tried to find her, but she wasn't there. I looked everywhere, and then when I couldn't find her, I told Maria. She grabbed hold of me and looked everywhere too."

"In the report, you told the police at the time that the front gate was open," Boyd said.

"Yeah, but that could have been from when I came over, or anything. I don't remember hearing it."

"What happened when Maria realised Eva was missing?" Grace asked the girl.

"We went back inside and Maria told me to stay sitting in the kitchen. She called the police and then Eva's parents." Jennifer shrugged. "Then the police came and they interviewed me. Then someone suggested they call my parents. They came and I went home."

"Did you ever have any contact with Eva's family after what happened?"

Jennifer shook her head. "They never spoke to me or my parents. I never saw Maria or Eva again. After awhile, the police stopped asking questions. The only thing that changed was that my parents became REALLY overprotective."

Boyd stood up. "Right. You stay here while we talk to your parents. Stella!"

The young woman poked her head around the door. "Yes?"

"Stay here with Jennifer. We're going to talk to the parents."

Jennifer rolled her eyes as Stella came in and Boyd and Grace left. "Is he always like that?"

Stella nodded. "Yep."

* * *

"We got a call about 6pm that evening from a police officer," Jennifer's mother, Gilda Starr began. "They said that Eva had gone missing, that Jennifer was safe, and did I want to come and get her."

"At that stage, did you know any of the circumstances of Eva's disappearance?" Grace asked.

"All we did was get in the car to go and get Jennifer," her husband, Martin said. "We just wanted to see that Jennifer was safe."

"What happened when you got there?"

"The police wouldn't let us go into the house until they'd verified who we were. Then they let us in to get Jennifer. One of the police told us that Eva had gone missing."

"Were Eva's parents there?"

Martin nodded. "They were both in the living room with the nanny."

"We didn't talk to them," Gilda added. "They didn't seem to want to see anyone, so we took Jennifer and left."

"Did you ever talk to Maria after that night?"

"No. And the Snowdon's never spoke to us or Jennifer again."

"Did Jennifer ever tell you what happened that night?" Grace asked.

"The police suggested we get her grief counselling," Gilda said. "We did that, and we tried to talk to her about it, but she didn't want to talk about it. She said she hadn't seen what happened and that she didn't know where Eva was."

* * *

"Did the girl say anything useful?" Boyd asked Stella, as the Starrs left.

"She asked if your behaviour was normal," Stella said helpfully.

Boyd made a face. "Wonderful." He turned around and faced the whiteboard. "So we've spoken to everyone except Maria."

"Madison," Grace reminded him.

"Maria," Boyd said. "She needs to remember everything as Maria, not some made up name."

Grace sighed heavily and Boyd spun around to look at her.

"What?"

Grace just stared back at him. "What, what?"

Stella and Spence exchanged glances.

"Let's just go find whatever her name is," Boyd muttered.

* * *

Stella walked into her home that evening to be confronted by a concerned looking sister. "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Mum knows you had a man sleep over last night." Caroline took a step back, waiting for the outburst.

"She WHAT? What did you tell her?"

"Wait! What you do mean, what did I tell her? Maybe it was you. Maybe you couldn't keep your bedroom activities down to an appropriate noise level."

Stella wrinkled her nose. "Stop talking about my bedroom activities. And they weren't loud."

"Well, it could be her secret mother's intuition. She's always had that irritating sense of knowing something you don't want her to know."

"Stella? Is that you home?"

Caroline grinned. "Good luck."

She began to leave the room, happy to escape what proved to be an interesting discussion, but Stella grabbed her arm at the last minute.

"Oh no, you don't. You're staying right here. Support and all that."

"Damn," Caroline muttered.

"Stella, is there something you're not sharing with us?" Marie appeared in the room, her eyes fixed on her eldest daughter.

Stella almost wilted under her mother's gaze. "Uh…"

"Stella has a boyfriend," Caroline said helpfully.

Her sister blinked. "Well, I wouldn't call him that…I mean, we never really…"

Marie stared at her daughter. "Well what would you call him?"

Stella shrugged. "Spence?"

Marie smiled. "As in Spencer Tracy? How lovely."

Caroline smirked and her sister elbowed her.

"You will bring your Spencer for dinner. Tomorrow. I want to meet him."

"But Mum…"

Marie stared at her daughter again. "Does your Spencer not eat dinner?"

"Danger, Will Robinson," Caroline muttered.

"No…I mean yes…I mean…"

"Good. Tomorrow night then. Dinner is on the table now, so you better come and eat it while it's hot."

Caroline watched their mother go back into the kitchen. "You know, it's nice that she has someone else's love life to focus on now instead of mine."

Stella sighed heavily and trooped into the kitchen.

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

5/?

"Let's go and see Maria."

"Madison," Grace said.

"Let's go and see whatshername. Stella, Spence, stay here and keep working on case files from other children that have gone missing."

Grace glanced briefly at Boyd, before her eyes turned again to Stella and Spencer. Spencer caught her glance and dipped his head, but Stella missed it completely.

"Come on, Grace!"

After they left, Spencer looked over the desk at Stella. "Did you see that look that Grace gave us?"

Stella looked confused. "What look?"

"Like she knows something is going on."

Her eyes widened. "What?"

"She probably just thinks she saw something. But we can't give her any more chances to get any ideas."

"Alright," she replied quietly.

Spencer watched her for a moment, then smiled and reached over, taking her hand. "We'll work it out. I promise. Let's just make sure not to get Grace discovering things before we're ready to say anything, okay?"

Stella nodded and kissed his hand. "Okay. And mum wants you to come to dinner tonight."

It was Spencer's turn to be shocked. "What?"

"Not my fault. She's not a woman to be argued with."

"Dinner?" It was almost a squeak.

Stella lifted an eyebrow. "What's the problem? You've had dinner at my place before."

"Yeah, but your mother wasn't there."

She smirked. "Does my mother scare you?"

"Most mother's of girls that I'm dating do."

"I don't think she'll draw blood. Besides, Caroline will be there and I'll protect you."

Spencer sighed. "Alright, alright."

Stella grinned and kissed him quickly. "Good boy."

* * *

"Madison?" Grace was the first to talk to the girl. She didn't want the interview getting off on the wrong foot by Boyd calling her Maria. "I'm Dr Grace Foley and this is Chief Superintendent Peter Boyd. We rang earlier?"

Madison scowled and gestured inside her home. Grace and Boyd sat on the couch, Madison sitting opposite them.

"It was seven years ago. I'm trying to get away from all that."

"Madison, we found Eva," Grace said.

"What?"

"She'd been kept alive for five years. She was twelve when she died from a gunshot wound to the back of the head," Boyd explained.

Madison put a hand over her mouth. "Oh god."

Grace tried not to shove Boyd out of the room. "Madison, the reason we're here, is that we need to find out as much information as possible so that we can find out what happened to Eva."

"I told everything I knew to the police."

"I know," Grace assured her. "But we need you to tell us. Tell us exactly what happened."

Madison sighed. "I was baby-sitting Eva and her friend Jennifer. Eva's parents were going away for a conference. Jennifer was supposed to stay the night."

"Jennifer said you got a phone call."

Madison nodded. "The two girls were playing hide and seek. When the phone rang, I told them to stay inside."

"Who was on the phone?" Boyd asked.

"I don't remember. I think it was a wrong number or someone selling something. Anyway, when I got off the phone, Jennifer came running in and said she couldn't find Eva."

"And then you looked for her," Grace prompted.

"Yeah. I thought she was just hiding really well from Jennifer. But I checked everywhere I could think of. When I couldn't find her I started calling, but she never responded."

"Jennifer said the gate was open – do you remember that?" Boyd said.

"I'm not sure. All I remember is that I called the police straight away."

"What about Eva's parents?"

"I called them as well. They said they'd come back straight away."

"How did they seem?"

"I don't know! I guess scared, upset…I'm not sure. A lot of that day is a blur."

"Tell us what happened then," Grace urged.

"The police came and started asking all the questions. They looked around for her as well, but when they couldn't find her, they realised that she was really missing. Then they told me to ring Jennifer's parents."

"What happened when the Snowdon's got home?"

"The police took them into the living room and shut the door. Mrs Snowdon was hysterical."

"How long did you stay after that?"

"A police officer came out and told me I could go home. I grabbed my things and left."

"When did you see the Snowdon's again?"

"I didn't," Madison said. "And then, after there was all the press about it, I just figured it was better not to see them."

"Why did you change your name?" Boyd asked.

Madison sighed. "After all the press that happened when Eva went missing, I was getting no jobs. My name was always associated with what happened to Eva. It was just easier changing my name than having to explain everything."

As Boyd and Grace walked towards the car, he brought up a new point.

"I wonder if anyone traced that phone call that Maria got when the girls were playing?"

"It would be a pretty big coincidence if they weren't connected," Grace agreed. "But I still don't understand why they only took one girl."

"Maybe they weren't planning for Jennifer to be there." Boyd started the car. "I think we need to find out more about Eva's schedule."

* * *

Stella studied her sister from the doorway of her room. Caroline looked over the book she was reading and lifted an eyebrow.

"You want something?"

"I want you to tell me what was going on at home."

"Nothing's going on." Caroline went back to her book.

Stella marched over and took the book off her sister. "I know when you're lying to me. She sat down on the side of the bed. "What's going on?"

Caroline frowned. "I don't know what you're talking about. And give me my book back."

Stella held the book away. "No. Not until you tell me what's going on."

"It's nothing. I'm working for the police as a sketch artist. I also recreate faces. Apparently it helps that I have a photographic memory."

"Wasn't that the reason you never graduated from the academy?"

"The reason I never graduated was seeing my best friend's mutilated body after her boyfriend had murdered her and her baby."

Stella scooted closer to her sister, putting her arm around her. "And if I knew how to get that out of your head, I'd do it. But why go back to policework now?"

"I don't know," Caroline replied, resting her head on Stella's shoulder. "I wish I did."

"It's good you came here. It sounds like you needed a break."

"Yeah, maybe I did."

"Mum said you thought someone was following you."

"Don't worry about it, Stella. It was probably just my imagination."

"I do worry about it. I'm your older sister. I'm entitled to worry."

Caroline grinned. "If I were you, I'd be worrying more about tomorrow night when Spencer comes to dinner. Mum's going to grill him like one of her steaks."

Stella grimaced. "Please don't remind me."

Caroline patted her arm. "That's what little sisters are for."

--


	6. Chapter 6

6/?

"Are you wearing a tie?"

Stella paused as she walked into the main room of the lab and bit her lip as she saw Spencer looking awkward. Grace and Eve stood by as Boyd looked at Spence's tie in amusement.

"Yeah. Is that a problem?"

"No problem," Boyd replied. "Just you stopped wearing them for a while and now it's back…what's going on? Hot date?"

Stella tried not to blush or laugh and she focused on the dead body. "Is this case related to Eva Snowdon?"

"It's possible. Both are around the same age, both aren't virgins but neither have any sign of trauma. We're going to need an identification before we can check to see how long ago she went missing and at what age."

"I'll get started on the missing persons that Spencer collected," Stella said.

"Good idea. Spence, go show her where they are. Grace, we need to talk to Jennifer again."

Grace watched suspiciously as Spencer and Stella left the room. "Why?"

"Maybe this girl was someone that they knew."

"You want to show a picture of a dead body to someone who's already been through hell? She's a child, Boyd."

"She's a witness."

"Boyd…"

Eve looked between them and then looked at the body. She was in the line of fire. Again.  


* * *

"You're nervous," Stella said, her fingers straightening Spencer's tie.

They were in the back of the main room, near the coffee machine. He fidgeted and she gently hit him on the chest, silently ordering him to stay still.

"I'm not nervous. I just…I'm meeting your mother."

"She doesn't bite." Stella shrugged. "Often."

"Stella…"

"Oh calm down, I'm just kidding."

"Does she know I'm black?"

"Never came up."

"Stella!"

She looked up at him. "What? Why does it matter?"

"She doesn't want you to be dating a nice French boy?"

Stella rolled her eyes. "My sister isn't dating a French boy. She's dating an Englishman which amuses my family."

"Does she know we work together?"

"Nope."

"Did you tell her ANYTHING about me?"

"She knows you're name is Spencer. She likes Spencer Tracy."

"Oh great, like that's not a lot to live up to."

Stella smirked, finished with his tie. "You're acting like a nervous schoolboy. It's just dinner. My sister's going to be there, so mum can grill her instead of you."

"Your sister has been living with your mother. We both know that I'm the one who's going to get grilled here."

"You're a cop, I'm sure you can handle it."

"Thanks a lot."

Stella pressed a gentle kiss to his lips. "Stop complaining. You're going to be fine."

"We shouldn't do that here. Not for a while."

She stepped back, biting her lip. "You're right. Sorry."

"Stella…" He reached his hand out to her, gently touching her hip. "Stella…"

She smiled softly at him. "I know. Look, I'll just get my things and I'll meet you at home, okay?"

He caressed her hip for a moment. "Okay."

* * *

When Spencer finally arrived that night, Stella was already waiting for him at the front door. She smiled as he walked in.

"Hi."

"Hi." He pressed a long kiss to her lips. "Long time no see."

She took his jacket from him. "Very amusing."

He put a hand on her arm. "Stella – about earlier…"

"It's fine."

Before she turned away, he gripped her hand. "No, it's not."

"Spence, my mother and sister…"

"Can wait. Please."

Stella finally turned to face him. "Okay."

"You know how I feel about you. And the last thing I want is for anything at work to jeopardise us."

She smiled at him. "Aren't we already playing with fire?"

"You can't help who you fall in love with."

Stella froze, her eyes locking onto his. "Spencer…"

"I know what I said and I meant it."

"You just…you've never…"

"I know. But I said it now and I meant it."

She walked closer to him. "Say it again. Please."

"I love you," he whispered.

"I love you," she murmured back.

They kissed slowly and Spencer put his arms around her.

"If we keep kissing, your mother and sister might wonder where we are."

"Mmm." She kissed him once more. "Alright, come on."

Marie was in the kitchen, ordering Caroline back and forth with cutlery and plates. When the younger woman saw her sister, she smirked.

"Gee, Stella, I was wondering if you and Spencer had gotten lost or something."

Stella sent her sister a dirty look. "Mum, this is Spencer Jordan. Spencer, my mother, Marie Goodman."

Spencer smiled as winningly as he knew how. "Nice to meet you, ma'am."

Marie looked up and down at Spencer for a moment, before nodding. "Nice to meet you too. Are you hungry?"

* * *

Stella was surprised at how restrained her mother was being in interrogating Spencer. She had simply asked if he enjoyed his job, about his family, and what he liked to do in his spare time. Stella had expected more about what his intentions were.

And perhaps a quiz on how often Spencer stayed the night.

Caroline was also surprised, considering the grilling her boyfriend had gotten when first introduced to the family. "So, Spencer, what are your intentions towards my sister?"

Stella tried not to choke on her dinner. "Caroline!"

"What? You know that mum was going to ask eventually – I thought we might as well get the inevitable over and done with."

Stella glanced sideways at Spencer. He felt put upon the spot, but took a deep breath.

"I love your sister. And…we're colleagues. It's complicated."

"Subject closed," Stella said quickly. "Forever."  


* * *

Later that night, when Caroline had disappeared and Marie was reading in the den, Stella stole Spencer up to her room.

"You did good tonight," she murmured, closing the door behind her.

"Thanks," he replied, his hands running down her arms.

She smiled at him, her fingers undoing his tie. "You know, as much as I love your casual look at work…tattoo and all, you do look good in a suit."

He grinned, his fingers caressing the skin at her hip. "I guess we'll have to get an occasion for me to wear a suit…and you in a dress."

"What kind of dress?" she murmured, unbuttoning his shirt.

"Something that hugged in all the right places. Like here." His finger touched the underside of her breast through her shirt. "And here." His hands skimmed across her hips. "Something I could unzip at the back, let it fall off you and leave you standing there."

She lifted her arms so he could take off her shirt. "Sounding good so far."

"So far? What more do you want?"

Stella smiled mischievously at him as he unbuckled his pants. "What would you do to me afterward?"

* * *


End file.
